Sony will cut about 900 jobs in its PlayStation division, or about 8% of its global workforce, becoming the latest company in the technology and gaming sector to announce layoffs.
I’m worried that after years of layoffs, they have become a custom. It feels like companies were deliberating laying off people for longer before that, avoiding bad news. Nowadays, ‘everyone’ is doing it. And nothing prevents them from over hiring and firing in large amounts over and over again.
You needn’t worry, it won’t help. They are absolutely a standard shareholder and executive communication tool. Traditionally they were announced ahead of weak earnings to soften the blow to investors with the promise of savings. Then geniuses thought, why not both, and started announcing them with good earnings too. Who doesn’t like to juice the stock a bit as an exec when your compensation is largely in grants and/or vesting options in that same stock?
Major layoffs are done now to hit targets every quarter if needed until morale improves stock price targets are hit or exec’s jobs are safe for another quarter of obscene wealth redistribution.
This is not limited to gaming, or even tech, it’s just catching the employees and the economy by surprise here given how well many of these companies are doing when there is no clear reason other than obvious, unfettered greed.
I’m worried that after years of layoffs, they have become a custom. It feels like companies were deliberating laying off people for longer before that, avoiding bad news. Nowadays, ‘everyone’ is doing it. And nothing prevents them from over hiring and firing in large amounts over and over again.
You needn’t worry, it won’t help. They are absolutely a standard shareholder and executive communication tool. Traditionally they were announced ahead of weak earnings to soften the blow to investors with the promise of savings. Then geniuses thought, why not both, and started announcing them with good earnings too. Who doesn’t like to juice the stock a bit as an exec when your compensation is largely in grants and/or vesting options in that same stock?
Major layoffs are done now to hit targets every quarter if needed until
morale improvesstock price targets are hit or exec’s jobs are safe for another quarter of obscene wealth redistribution.This is not limited to gaming, or even tech, it’s just catching the employees and the economy by surprise here given how well many of these companies are doing when there is no clear reason other than obvious, unfettered greed.